DAILY NEWS: RoadMovies Set with New Loach Film; Wenders Project Also on Tap

DAILY NEWS: RoadMovies Set with New Loach Film; Wenders Project Also on Tap

DAILY NEWS: RoadMovies Set with New Loach Film; Wenders Project Also on Tap

by Eugene Hernandez/indieWIRE

(indieWIRE/ 10.19.00) — The new film from Ken Loach (“Bread and Roses“) has begun production in England, according to Dr. Martin Blaney, spokesman forco-producers, Road Movies Filmproduktion GmbH. The film, entitled “TheNavigators,” is a joint effort between RoadMovies, Spain’s TornasolFilms/Alta Films, and Britain’s Parallax Pictures.

In an announcement yesterday, the movie was described as a “drama about agroup of railway maintenance men confronted with the privatisation anddown-sizing of their industry.” It is expected to wrap production in themiddle of next month.

Previous films produced by RoadMovies and Parallax include Loach’s “Land andFreedom” (1994), “Carla’s Song” (1996), “My Name Is Joe” (1997/98) and“Bread and Roses” (2000), as well as Henrique Goldman‘s “Princesa” (2000).

Road Movies Filmproduktion GmbH, a company of Das Werk AG, recentlyannounced that company principle Wim Wenders has re-teamed with his “ParisTexas” partner Sam Shepard to write a screenplay for Wenders’ next featurefilm. The movie is being produced entirely by RoadMovies and will shoot inthe U.S. early next year.

In a statement, Wenders described his new projects as “a road movie rightacross the United States, a family saga and, at the same time a story whichtakes place in the age of the Internet and global communication”.

Other Das Werk AG projects include Stefanie Sycholt‘s feature debut,“Malunde,” a new film being executive produced by Wim Wenders under theTraumwerk Filmproduktion banner. The film, shooting in South Africa, isexpected to wrap production on November 11th. [Eugene Hernandez]